A series of ‘tough matches’ are expected at the week-long Qatar ExxonMobil Open, QTF Secretary General said after the draw ceremony yesterday.
Doha: A series of ‘tough matches’ are expected at the week-long Qatar ExxonMobil Open, QTF Secretary General said after the draw ceremony yesterday.
Secretary General of the Qatar Tennis Federation (QTF), Tariq Darwish Zainal, was joined by Vice President and Human Resources Manager, ExxonMobil, Abdul Latif Al Naimi, Tournament Director Karim Alami, QTF Executive Director Saad Al Mohannadi, ATP Tour official Lars Graff and QTF referee Ashraf Hamouda at the draw ceremony conducted at Four Seasons Hotel in Doha.
Participating players Marius Copil of Romania, Pierre-Hugues Herbert of France, Robin Haase of the Netherlands and Marco Cecchinato of Italy at the draw ceremony of the Qatar ExxonMobil Open also featured at the draw ceremony.
“Some of the top players are playing at this week’s Qatar ExxonMobil Open,” Zainal said yesterday.
“We have the World Number One Novak Djokovic playing here this week. Stan Wawrinka and Tomas Berdych also in the draw. I am sure the fans will love watching them in action at the Khalifa Tennis and Squash Complex,” he added.
Djokovic, who won the Qatar ExxonMobil Open in 2016 and 2017, is set to make his fifth appearance in Qatar. He will be joined by Dominic Thiem of Austria and Karen Kachanov of Russia at the 32-man tournament.
“Fans have come to see the best of tennis in Qatar. We always have a strong field and it is no different this time also,” Zainal added. “Tickets are available for those who don’t want to miss out on watching the great players. Some touch clashes are expected,” he added.
“I believe the draw is very tough for some players. Everybody would want to be in the final. That would mean some tough matches are expected,” Zainal said. “Our national team players are also part of the main draw. We hope they have a chance to move ahead. We also want the fans to be here at the venue from Monday,” Zainal added.
